Terrifying Texas Road Bridge Re-Opens

Detour Life

May 26

rainbow bridge texas — Photo Shutterstock

The Rainbow Bridge linking Port Arthur and Bridge City in southeast Texas is set to scare motorists again after being closed for a year for vital repair work.

From certain angles it looks like the crossing over the Neches River is an almost vertical climb and, since 1938 when it first opened, it has set hearts racing as drivers approach its 680 ft long span. In 1997 the bridge, which clears the river by 177 feet, was made one-way westboard, which has helped to alleviate anxiety, but last year, to add to drivers’ fears the Rainbow Bridge was deemed unsafe.

Among more than $10 million of repairs, the whole length of the concrete deck has now been replaced, along with 1200 rivets, so it is ready to take around 30,000 cars and trucks that brave it every day.

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